Madoff pleads guilty to fraud

NEW YORK - Bernard Madoff has pleaded guilty to charges that he carried out an epic fraud that robbed investors worldwide of billions of dollars.

Thursday's plea means Madoff could be sentenced to 150 years in prison. It comes three months after he admitted that his once-revered investment fund was all a big lie [--] a Ponzi scheme in the billions of dollars.

The scam quickly turned the 70-year-old Madoff into one of the most vilified men in the world as thousands of investors came forward to say they were defrauded.